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It is the story of people fighting for the promise made to all future generations at the signing of the Declaration of Independence: that no government has the right to rob us of our life or our liberty or our humble pursuit of happiness.
freedom must be fought for and won by every generation.
Most Americans are appalled and ashamed. We are better than this. And we must make right the wrongs that this administration has committed in our name.
The United States spends more on health care than any other advanced economy, but we don’t see better outcomes in exchange. Incredibly, in many parts of the country, life expectancy is actually shrinking, and when it comes to maternal mortality, the United States is one of only thirteen countries where rates have gotten worse over the past twenty-five years.
Repealing the ACA would result in tens of millions of people losing their health insurance. It would allow insurance companies to reinstate lifetime limits, driving countless Americans into bankruptcy, and permit insurance companies to once again deny coverage based on preexisting conditions, from asthma to high blood pressure, diabetes to cancer. We all remember what that was like. We know we can’t go back.
If someone like Serena Williams can go through such an ordeal, imagine what happens to other patients who articulate symptoms and are ignored.
We also need to encourage a new generation of Americans to go into the mental health care field. Let’s create a model similar to Teach for America or the Peace Corps—an apprenticeship system that has as its core mission the goal of getting people to serve their country through mental health training.
Ultimately, I believe we should provide mental health care on demand. And when I say “on demand,” I mean that whoever you are and wherever you are, mental health treatment is available if you need it.
And let’s speak one final truth: big corporations and the richest people in the richest country in the world can afford to pay their fair share of taxes so that we can fix the economy. It’s necessary, it’s moral, and it’s wise.
Climate change also increases the risk of deadly global pandemics making their way to the United States.
We must rejoin the Paris Agreement, because only together can we reverse the trends of climate change and prevent some of its more terrifying outcomes.
We must remember what we have worked and in some cases bled for: an international order that promotes peace and cooperation; a commitment to democracy, here and around the world; a rejection of despots and tyrants and dictators who rule their countries based on their self-interest alone, not the interests of the people they are meant to serve. Imperfect though we have been, ours is a history in pursuit of a better, safer, freer world. In the years to come, with all the challenges to come, we cannot lose sight of who we are and who we can be.
In the face of powerful headwinds, it’s easy to become tired. To become overwhelmed. But we cannot give up. The beginning of our downfall comes when we stop aspiring.
